Since 1992, the United Nations’ International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) on December 3 has been annually observed around the world.
IDPD 2018 focused on empowering persons with disabilities and ensuring inclusiveness and equality. The Institute on Disability and Public Policy (IDPP) has made a variety of major contributions that were launch or announced during this year’s celebration.
Participation at UN Headquarters
IDPP Executive Director, Dr. Derrick Cogburn, participated in IDPD activities at the UN Headquarters in New York. Events at UNHQ brought together UN entities, national and local policy makers, civil society organizations, academic institutions, and organizations of persons with disabilities to discuss the way forward for inclusive, equitable and sustainable development.
Click here to read more about the official IDPD events. A livestream recording of the day’s events can be found here.
Pictured: Back row - Ambassador Luis Gallegos, Permanent Representative of Ecuador to the United Nations, IDPP Joint Advisory Boar, Chair; Akiko Ito, Chair, Secretariat for the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA). Seated - Candace Cable, 9-time gold medalist, 12-time medalist, and US International Council on Disability (USICD) Board Member.
New Report on Accessible Global Governance
IDPP announced its latest research on accessible global governance. Entitled “Accessibility in Global Governance: The (In)visibility of Persons with Disabilities,” this report is the first systematic attempt to examine accessibility barriers in global governance.
The study highlights the social, political, economic, and technological factors that inhibit the participation of persons with disabilities.
It recommends immediate actions modeled on pioneering interventions at recent U.N. and other decision-making forums and programs, which can empower more than one billion people around the world to effectively participate in global governance processes.
Download and read the report here.
UN Flagship Report on Disability and Development
The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) launched the first-ever UN Flagship Report on Disability and Development.
The report demonstrates that persons with disabilities are at a disadvantage regarding most Sustainable Development Goals and provides recommendations on moving disability-inclusive sustainable development forward.
IDPP’s Dr. Derrick Cogburn was an author and contributor to this report. Cogburn also served as a member of the UN Expert Meeting on Monitoring and Evaluation for Disability-Inclusive Development (MEDD), which was the body that was tasked with producing this report.
Click here to download and read the full report.
Cities For All
IDPP participated in the launch of Cities For All: Global Compact on Inclusive and Accessible Cities (#Cities4All). IDPP is a founding signatory and academic partner of this historic global compact.
City leaders and mayors from Berlin, New York, Chicago and Amman gathered for a signing ceremony on IDPD signifying their commitment towards inclusive and accessible cities for persons with disabilities.
Cities for All emerged out of the need for the voices of the global disability community in local and international decision-making processes guiding urban planning and development. This compact is a declaration that aligns key commitments to accessibility, universal design and inclusion within the UN Sustainable Development Goals, UN New Urban Agenda, UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and the WHO’s Age-Friendly Cities and Communities Initiative.
"I'm delighted to share the progress that members have been making with our Cities for All Global Campaign,” said IDPP International Advisory Board Chair Victor Pineda. “The Cities for All Global Compact and Campaign has directly engaged over a dozen mayors and solidified strong alliances with new partners.”
Learn more about Cities For All here.
Click here to watch the IDPD panel discussion on Cities For All.